Zakuri 210mm Blue #1 Migaki Funayuki

 The Bontenunryu series features a VG-10 core, clad in stainless Damascus steel. A long time ago, when I was still cooking professionally, I used knives from Ryusen. Ryusen used to be one of the most popular OEM makers in Japan, as they had an excellent reputation for the knives they produced. More recently, the have stopped all OEM work to focus on their own brand. With this shift in philosophy, they have redoubled efforts to constantly make improvements to their various series (profiles, grinds, fit and finish, forging, heat treating, etc.). This is extremely apparent in their most recent offerings. They have done an excellent job at both researching on their own, as well as eliciting in-depth feedback from professional chefs and customers. Their business philosophy is such that they are open to new and better ways of doing things at every step of the way. When visiting Echizen on one of our Japan trips, we met with Ryusen Hamono, the maker of Blazen knives. Their commitment to excellence in grind quality, fit and finish, and consistency in each line they made was most impressive. Likewise, it was clear they took great care and pride in each step of the knife making process, which they do entirely in-house. From the forging to the heat treating to the product design and packaging, they had smart, well thought out processes in place. We are proud to be Ryusen's sole official dealership for the Americas.

The Bontenunryu series is a medium weight western handled series.  While they aren’t super lightweight in hand, they aren’t heavy… they have a great in-hand feel. The Damascus cladding very elegant, and the fit and finish on the blade is very nice. The western style handles are also extremely well finished. The knives have nice distal taper and are ground quite thin at and behind the edge, with a medium thickness along the spine (by no means thick). The VG-10 core is exceptionally well heat treated, as they use molten salt baths in the process, which we agree is an excellent way to go about heat treating this steel. This series also comes with a black wood saya.

For many years we've had customers ask us about carving sets.  Especially around Thanksgiving, it seems everyone is looking for a set like this.  We've always looked around during our annual trips to Japan, but the concept of a carving set is not such a big part of Japanese culture.  This year, we finally found a few sets while visiting Seki.  Of course, we immediately picked them up and brought them back before the holidays.  The set includes a stainless carving knife and a carving fork.  They have a sleek and stylish curved design and come very sharp and ready to go (we are sharpening them before they leave the store). We hope you enjoy this set.

Chocolate Knife Silver with Brown Leather Case... This was designed by Ryusen to be used for cutting petit fours, truffles, and similar items, as a way to display the inside to the guest or customer.  The blade is thin and shaped in such a way that it is easy to hold at an angle convenient for this kind of task.  The shape is similar to a kiridashi, but it is a double bevel knife.  The coating helps reduce sticking to the blade.

Chocolate Knife Black with Red Leather Case... This was designed by Ryusen to be used for cutting petit fours, truffles, and similar items, as a way to display the inside to the guest or customer.  The blade is thin and shaped in such a way that it is easy to hold at an angle convenient for this kind of task.  The shape is similar to a kiridashi, but it is a double bevel knife.  The coating helps reduce sticking to the blade.